This community survey of 1930, sponsored by the Wisconsin Department of the American Legion, was a competition between local legion posts for the Pendill Trophy. The Wisconsin Conference on Social Work was responsible for organizing the program and Aubrey W. Williams directed the project. A good many people who served on the committee of the 1927 Better Cities Survey also participated in the American Legion Community Survey, and that survey was also conducted by the Wisconsin Conference on Social Work and Aubrey Williams. As a result, the American Legion Survey was based largely on the 1927 survey in scope and format (see Mss 1 Better Cities Survey). There were eleven areas for which reports were written: historical background, city planning, municipal government, industry, health, education, library, social work, recreation, town and country relations, and religion.
Because the local posts competed against each other in each separate topic, no overall report was ever produced. The purpose of the competition, however, was not to pit one city against another; rather, the intention was for the local post to learn about their own community. It was felt, at least on the national level, that community leaders could learn from the survey as well as the post members. Judging was based on the thoroughness, completeness, and accuracy of the reports. According to a newspaper article of July 1930, La Crosse scored second overall. The city scored first in historical background and library, and second in city planning and social work.
